LONG-WINGED SWIMMEES 



','>T . I'ahasixic Jaeger. Stcrcorarius p/irasitlcus 



Range. — Northern Hemisphere, wintering soutli 

 to South America. 



The Parasitic .Tseger is very similar to the 

 Pomarine except that the central tail featliers 

 are pointed and are straight instead of twisted, 

 it is an abundant bird in Alaska, breeding from 

 the Aleutian Cliain northward. 



They locate their nests in the highest parts 

 of marshy places, the nest itself being only a de- 

 pression in the ground lined with grass and moss. 

 The two eggs have an olive greenish or brownish 

 ground and are marked with various shades of 

 brown and black. Size 2.15 x 1.65. 



"BrownislT 



Stercorarius 



south in winter to 



38. Long-tailed Jaeger. 

 longicaudus. 



Range. — Arctic America; 

 South America. Parastic JwKer 



The long-tailed Jsger is, according to length, Long-tailert J*ger 



the largest of the Jffigers, being 21 in. long; this is, however, due to the long 

 sharp pointed central pair of tail feathers, which extend about eight inches 

 beyond the others, and from the most noticeable distinguishing point from 

 the former species. The plumages that have been described are the light 

 phases; all the Jfflgers have a dark 

 phase in which the plumage is a near- 

 ly uniform sooty brown, liglitest be- 

 low. 



The Long-tailed Jaegers are the 

 most numerous in Alaska and are 

 even more graceful in flight than are 

 tlie Gulls and Terns, floating, skim- 

 ming, sailing, plunging, and darting 

 about with incredible swiftness and 

 ease. Like the otliers of this family, 

 they pilfer their food from the Gulls, 

 and are also very destructiye to young 

 birds and eggs. Their eggs are eitlier 

 laid on the bare ground or in a 

 slight depression, scantily lined with 

 grasses. Tlie eggs are indistinguishable from those of the preceding species 

 except that they average a trifle smaller. Size 2.10 x 1.50. 



37 



Olive bro^vn 



